Allie took Melissa’s hand and went with her. They sat on the ground, a little too close to the fire for Allie’s comfort. Sweat dripped off her body as she watched Zen swaying along with the other women, dancing around the maypole in time to the music of a circle of drummers. Melissa sat close by Allie, narrating the dance for her.
“The Goddess draws near to her lover,” Melissa said. Her voice sounded far-off,
dreamy. Allie watched the pink and red ribbons intertwine around the top of the pole.
“She lets him inside her, just a bit, to tease the head of his cock with the lips of herpussy.” Zen and the other women twisted and spun, moving their hips suggestively.
Ribbon covered more and more of the maypole.
Allie saw the men on the other side of the maypole. Orlando stood among them,
watching Zen dance.
“The Goddess drives the Horned One deeper inside her,” Melissa continued. “He reels from the touch of the smooth walls of the Great Mother’s pussy. The beautiful Goddess holds her hips still, holding her breath, content to feel the solid length of her Consort inside her.” The dance concluded amidst loud cheers from the crowd. The ribbons covered the pole. “He’s inside of her up to the hilt now. Their union is complete, and now their mating can begin.”
Allie sat there for a moment, taking in Melissa’s words. The words, the dance, the meat in her belly, and the wine were all having their effect on her. She was alert, but drowsy, content, and more than a little aroused. She wondered where her May King was. All around her, she saw nothing but women.
Before she knew what was going on, the women held Allie by the hands, taking her away. They lifted her onto a picnic table. She was aware of them unbuttoning her dress and helping her out of her bra and panties. She was naked, but she wasn’t embarrassed. They left the black lace-up sandals on her feet.
Kameko now came toward her, carrying a silver bowl that Allie recognized. It was filled with dark blood, the blood of the deer they had eaten. The women dipped their fingers in the blood and touched it to Allie’s skin. It was cold from being in the refrigerator, the coolness felt good against her sweaty skin. The blood had a slightly musty, earthy smell. Any other time, it would have made Allie sick. But tonight, she understood the blood had its purpose. The women used it as paint, drawing sacred spirals on Allie’s face and around her breasts. Allie’s nipples hardened in response. They painted designs on her belly and thighs as well. Lastly, they placed the crown of oak leaves on her head, fixing it in place with hair pins.
When they had finished, they helped her off the table. The women clapped and cheered for their Queen.
“Go out into the wheat field,” Melissa whispered in Allie’s ear. “You’ll meet your King there. Be the Goddess for us. Bless the fields with your fertility; ensure that our crops will grow tall and strong, so that we will eat them and be healthy.” She kissed Allie’s lips as a blessing to close her invocation.
Allie did as she was told. She was thrilled and terrified at the same time. As she wandered out into the wheat, she heard the sounds of other couples, locked in acts of passion. Around the maypole, the crowd still roared with laughter, cheering and clapping. She left them all behind, wandering far out into the wheat. Her heart seemed to beat in time to the rhythm of the now-distant drum circle.
He found her before she saw him. She felt his hand, reaching out for her. She looked up and saw the May King’s crown of antlers in the dim light of the full moon.
“My Queen,” the Horned One whispered. He wrapped his arms around her. She let her body fall against his. He was naked except for the crown. He’d been painted with the blood, just as she had. There were dark spirals on his face and chest, and arrows painted on his arms and thighs. His body was hard and strong. His touch brought her a sense of peace. She didn’t think of him as a mortal man, a stranger. To Allie, the Horned One was the living embodiment of the Goddess’s Consort.
“My King,” she whispered back, closing her eyes.
He kissed her, gently, not daring to part his lips. She took his chaste kisses and turned them into something wilder. Bodies pressed together, smelling of sweat and farm soil and the exotic perfume of the deer’s blood, they joined in the rhythm of the world around them, kissing fiercely.
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Beltane is available as an e-book from
Eternal Press, or in
paperback.
Take the "Which Beltane Character Are You?" quiz on
facebook
Watch the Pagan Spirits novel series trailer on
YouTube
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Other fun stuff:
Download Brendan Gerad O'Brien's
World War II thriller free, now through May 22nd, when you use the coupon code BE86M.
Another free e-book: Marta Acosta, the author of
Happy Hour at Casa Dracula, offers her young adult novel
The Shadow Girl of Birch Grove free at
scribd!
announces the publication, in English and Slovenian, of his illustrated fairy tale Bal the Firefly (Kresnicek Bal). 
